After reading the other reviews, I now realize I should’ve played the Famicom version. The American version is stupid hard.

That’s honestly ok though— I expected the game to be punishing, so I wasn’t even that put off by it. I liked the character switching in this one, the clock tower level is legitimately impressive for an NES game, and the soundtrack, unsurprisingly, bangs.

This one may not be as timeless as the first game, or as interesting as the second, but I think it’s the most fun NES Castlevania to play. I will definitely be checking out the Japanese version.

Easily the best of the original Castlevania trilogy, though also the toughest. Goes back to the franchise foundation and builds a sprawling castle on it with improved biomic and challenge variety. Like its predecessors, emphasizes quick yet carefully positioned and spaced attacks. Branching paths and alternate characters were nice additions for that little bit of extra replayability. Engaging and demanding encounters. Better attempts at boss fights than the previous games, with most eventually learnable and often demanding that you do so to conquer them. All backed by a memorable and well-composed classical/baroque-inspired chiptune soundtrack that elevates the game's gothic adventure-horror aesthetic.

Massive difficulty spike in Dracula's Castle though, and the falling/melting blocks level in particular is ultra-boring to regain lost progress following every Game Over in its tough-as-nails latter half. It's basically 5-10 minutes of waiting around doing menial, repetitive tasks with little sense of self-improvement to be gained, like grinding low-level monsters in an RPG. Thankfully outside this one major misstep, most of the game remains rewarding if one can withstand its increasingly punishing brutality. Finishes with a strong final fight.

I recommend playing the Famicom version if possible, as it features a built-in sound chip that was used to make the already great soundtrack even better, as well as a slightly more balanced difficulty curve.

Castlevania was a simple and good time! It got me to remember that I actually really enjoy 2D platformers, I just lost touch with them. The music was fantastic was the big standout for the game. The visual aesthetic was great at most points, but missed sometimes. I enjoyed the level design as well, honing my skills to be able to clear a stage was satisfying and rewarding, even if there were some annoying and unfair sections. The checkpointing was the standout for the game, however. It made me so happy to see actual checkpoints in an NES game. It made it much more palatable while maintaining the difficulty. Overall fun time!